The Excruciating Difference between Good Writers and Great Writers

A micro-essay on the invisible skill that great writers have

Illustration by author

A writer is as good as the best sentence they write, and as great as the best sentence they leave out.

The best sentence you write signals your aptitude, which is the ability to write valuable things. All good writers have some aptitude for writing.

But aptitude doesn’t make writing great. Clarity does.

Writing has clarity if it knows exactly what it wants to say.

And the best sentence you leave out is the measure of your clarity.

If you’re able to leave out great sentences, you’re able to determine which of your most beautiful and interesting ideas is redundant to your piece. At that point, your message has momentum.

If reading is a journey, aptitude guarantees a scenic ride. But Clarity gives the work direction.

Thus, it is clarity that transports your reader and causes them to act.

What Great Writing Says that Good Writing Doesn’t